Loading up on No Loads

No-load funds continued to attract the bulk of new cash in 2005, according to data recently released by the Investment Company Institute, pulling in $154 billion of the total $192 billion in inflows to mutual funds last year. Mutual fund sales to investors in employer-sponsored 401(k) and other retirement plans account for a big chunk of these no-load fund sales, says the ICI. The mutual fund trade group says no-load inflows were probably also influenced by sales of funds of funds, which often invest in underlying no-load funds. Last year, funds of funds took in $79 billion in net new cash. Among load funds, Class A and C shares received all of the inflows, while B shares saw net outflows for the fifth consecutive year.